Cangene Cancels IGIV Development Program

TSX: CNJ

Readers are referred to the cautionary note regarding Forward-looking Information at the end of this release.

WINNIPEG, July 10, 2012 /CNW/ - Cangene Corporation (Cangene) today announces that following a strategic review, it has cancelled its product development program for Immune Globulin Intravenous (IGIV), an anti-infective used for a variety of indications.  The company based its decision on a determination that the program no longer fits with its refocused, specialty biopharmaceutical strategy and that the competitive environment had shifted substantially since the start of the program, impacting the manufacturing process development, cost of raw materials, manufacturing and infrastructure costs required to operate at scale, and market pricing.

"Following a review of the IGIV program within the context of our refocused corporate strategy and our current pipeline, we decided to reallocate our resources to other opportunities that we believe are more consistent with our core competencies and have better prospects for growth and return on investment," says John A. Sedor, President and CEO.  "As exemplified by our recently announced agreement with Camurus AB for the exclusive right to commercialize episil^® in the United States for the management and relief of pain associated with oral mucositis and other oral lesions, we are focusing on late-stage, in-licensing opportunities to enhance our pipeline.  We are confident that these types of alliances, along with focused research and product development activities, will create superior value for the company's stakeholders."

About Cangene Corporation
Cangene Corporation (TSX: CNJ), headquartered in Winnipeg, Canada, is one of the nation's oldest and largest biopharmaceutical companies. It is focused on the development and commercialization of hospital and oncology clinic based therapeutics. Cangene's products are sold worldwide and include products that have been accepted into the U.S. Strategic National Stockpile. Cangene has employees in six locations across North America. It operates manufacturing facilities in Winnipeg, Manitoba and Baltimore, Maryland (through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Cangene bioPharma, Inc.) where it produces its own products and undertakes contract manufacturing for a number of customers. Cangene operates three U.S. and one Canadian plasma-collection facilities operating under the name Cangene Plasma Resources. For more information about Cangene, visit the Company's website at www.cangene.com.

Cautionary Note regarding Forward-Looking Information
This document contains forward-looking statements about the Corporation, including its business operations, strategy, and expected financial performance and condition. Forward-looking statements include statements that are predictive in nature, depend upon or refer to future events or conditions, or include words such as "expects", "anticipates", "intends", "plans", "will", "believes", "estimates", or negative versions thereof, and similar expressions. In addition, any statement that may be made concerning future financial performance (including revenues, earnings or growth rates), ongoing business strategies or prospects, future use, safety and efficacy of unapproved products or unapproved uses of products, and possible future action by the Corporation are also forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based on current expectations and projections about future events and are inherently subject to, among other things, risks, uncertainties and assumptions about the Corporation, economic factors and the biopharmaceutical industry generally. They are not guarantees of future performance. Actual events and results could differ materially from those expressed or implied by forward-looking statements made by the Corporation due to, but not limited to, important factors such as sales levels; fluctuations in operating results; the Corporation's reliance on a small number of customers including government organizations; the demand for new products and the impact of competitive products, service and pricing; the availability and cost of raw materials, and in particular, the cost, availability and antibody concentration in plasma; progress and cost of clinical trials; costs and possible development delays resulting from use of legal, regulatory or legislative strategies by the Company's competitors; uncertainty related to intellectual property protection and potential costs associated with its defence as well as general economic, political and market factors in North America and internationally; interest and foreign exchange rates; business competition; technological change; changes in government action, policies or regulations; decisions by Health Canada, the United States Food and Drug Administration and other regulatory authorities regarding whether and when to approve drug applications that have been or may be filed, as well as their decisions regarding labeling and other matters that could affect the availability or commercial potential of drug candidates; unexpected judicial or regulatory proceedings; catastrophic events; the Corporation's ability to complete strategic transactions; and other factors beyond the control of management.

The reader is cautioned that the foregoing list of important factors is not exhaustive and there may be other factors listed in other filings with securities regulators, including factors set out under "Risk and Uncertainties" in the Corporation's Management Discussion and Analysis, which, along with other filings, is available for review at www.sedar.com. The reader is also cautioned to consider these and other factors carefully and not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Other than as specifically required by applicable law, the Corporation has no intention to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Contact Information

Francis J. St.Hilaire
Vice President, General Counsel & Secretary
Ph:  [phone]
Email: [email protected]